Two, including Utahn, indicted for threats after USADA's decision on Lance Armstrong

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Denver • Two men have been charged with directing threats toward U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart in the aftermath of USADA's decision to strip cyclist Lance Armstrong of his Tour de France titles.

The other, unsealed Friday, makes the same charge against Robert Hutchins of Sandy.

That indictment says Hutchins made the threat last Aug. 23, the same day Armstrong announced he wasn't going to fight the USADA sanctions for doping. "I have been subjected to a two-year federal criminal investigation followed by Travis Tygart's unconstitutional witch hunt," the cyclist said in a letter to the agency.

Both suspects in the threats cases have been arrested and are scheduled to make initial appearances in federal court in Denver on July 29.

Making threats via interstate commerce carries up to a five-year prison sentence and a $250,000 fine.

Shortly after Armstrong said he wouldn't fight the USADA sanctions, Tygart revealed he had received death threats and was asking the FBI to investigate.

In an interview with "60 Minutes" following the Armstrong penalties, Tygart said the death threats came anonymously via emails and letters. Asked if he remembered any specific threats, Tygart said, "The worst was probably puttin' a bullet in my head."

When news of the arrests went public, USADA chairman Edwin Moses released a statement thanking the FBI and U.S. attorney's office for handling the case.

No one answered the phone at numbers listed in public records for either Keats or Hutchins.

In August, USADA handed Armstrong a lifetime ban and stripped all seven of his Tour de France titles for running what Tygart called "the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen."

Since then, Armstrong has admitted to doping and stepped down from the Livestrong Foundation, which raised hundreds of millions of dollars for cancer research based largely on the cyclist's popularity. Armstrong overcame testicular cancer before winning his first Tour de France and used his story as an inspiration for others battling cancer.

Share This Article

USER COMMENTS

Reader comments on sltrib.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Salt Lake Tribune. We will delete comments containing obscenities, personal attacks and inappropriate or offensive remarks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. If you see an objectionable comment, please alert us by clicking the arrow on the upper right side of the comment and selecting "Flag comment as inappropriate". If you've recently registered with Disqus or aren't seeing your comments immediately, you may need to verify your email address. To do so, visit disqus.com/account. See more about comments here.